Folding coat rack and hat rack



Dec. 6, 1960 E. B. LOWELL ETAL 2,963,172

FOLDING COAT RACK AND HAT RACK Filed Dec. 30, 1957 5. $5322? 77 1 Z I RZNOES' CAWLEY United States Patent FOLDING COAT RACK AND HAT RACK Edward B. Lowell and Frances Cawley, both of 1273 Armstead Way, Baltimore 5, Md.

Filed Dec. 30, 1957, Ser. No. 706,086

"1 Claim. (Cl. 211-149) This invention relates to fixtures and more particularly to a coat and hat rack.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a combined folding coat and hat rack that is completely portable and which may be selectively erected in any desired location with a minimum amount of effort.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a folding coat rack and hat rack of the above type which may be used in large numbers for catered affairs, for church, school, and club functions, and for public shows of all types.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a folding coat and hat rack bearing the above objects in mind which is of simple construction, has a minimum number of parts, is inexpensive to manufacture and eflicient in operation.

For other objects and for a better understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure l is a perspective view, with parts broken away, of a folding coat and hat rack made in accordance with the present invention in operative use;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary front elevational view of certain parts of the present invention; and

Figure 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of still further parts of the present invention.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, a folding coat rack and hat rack made in accordance with the present invention is shown to include a main shelf member 12 which may be used to support hats 13, and the like in a conventional manner. The rear edge of this shelf 12 is provided with a shallow back stop 14 for limiting the rearward movement of any articles placed upon the shelf and thus preventing such articles from falling ofi. A longitudinal hanger bar 16 for supporting coats and suits 17, and the like by means of conventional hangers 18, is carried at opposite ends upon a pair of support arms 20.

With further reference to Figure 3 of the drawing, it will be noted that each such support arm 20 is provided with an inwardly turned leg 21 that is received within the tubular end construction of the bar 16. The opposite end of each suppoit arm 20 is provided with a hinge assembly 22 of a type similar to a piano hinge, that is secured to the rear edge of the shelf 12 and back stop 14.

Each end of the main shelf 12 is also provided with a support post 24 having a cross base bar 25 at the outer end' thereof. A rubber cup or pad 26 is secured to each end of the base bars 25 in order to prevent scratching and marring of the supporting surface. The opposite end of each post 24 includes a hinge assembly 28, similar to a piano hinge, that is connected to the respective end of the main shelf 12.

In a completely collapsed position, the coat hanger bar 16 is rotated about its hinge connections 22 on to the top of the main shelf 12, following which the support posts 24 are rotated about their hinge connections 28 2,963,172 Patented Dec. 6, 1960 on to the top of the main shelf 12 and rotated hanger bar 16. In this collapsed position, the unit requires a minimum amount of storage space, can be easily transported from one place to another, and is substantially sturdy so as not to be easily damaged. In order to erect the rack, it is only necessary to first rotate the support posts 24 outwardly about their hinge units 28 to the vertical position illustrated in Figure 1. Following this, the hanger bar 16 is rotated to the operative position shown, and hook latches 30 which are rotatably carried by each of the support posts 24 are rotated into securing engagement with each end of the hanger bar 16 to prevent relative movement between the support posts and hanger bar, from the disengaged or inoperative position 30a. These hook latches thus effectively maintain the rack in the set up position until it is ready to be disassembled for storage purposes.

While various changes may be made in the detail construction, it shall be understood that such changes shall be within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claim.

What we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States is:

In a portable, collapsible clothing rack of the character described, a one piece main supporting panel of rectangular configuration, a back stop of the same length as that of said panel integrally secured to the longitudinal rear edge thereof and projecting upwardly a suitable distance above the top surface thereof, a pair of horizontally spaced vertical supporting posts, each post comprising a transverse supporting bar integrally secured at the lower ends thereof, each post comprising a transverse hinge assembly integrally secured at the upper ends thereof, means for securing each of said hinge assemblies to the opposite ends of said panel midway between its front and rear edges thereof for permitting pivotal motion of said posts in a plane extending through the longitudinal center line of said panel, a pair of supporting arms, each arm having an inwardly turned leg at the lower end thereof, each arm having a transverse arm hinge assembly integrally secured at the upper ends thereof, means for securing each of said arm hinge assemblies to the rear vertical side of said back stop and at the opposite ends thereof, a tubular longitudinal hanger bar of substantially the same length as that of said panel, one of said inwardly turned legs integrally secured within the opposite ends of said tubular longitudinal hanger bar permitting pivotal motion of said hanger bar and arms about an axis extending longitudinally along the longitudinal rear lower edge of said back stop, a hook latch pivotally secured to each of said posts intermediate their ends forming the sole means for securing said hanger bar and posts at opposite ends of the panel in serviceable upright position, and said rack being adapted to be collapsed into a portable storage arrangement as a single unit with the free edges of said posts and said hanger bar coinciding with the free upper surface of said supporting panel when in collapsed position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 490,380 Ward Jan. 24, 1893- 1,793,036 Whitney Feb. 27, 1931 2,480,702 Bradford Aug. 30, 1949 2,675,981 Ferris Apr. 20, 1954 2,784,004 Hamrick Mar. 5, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 171,203 Austria May 10, 1952 331,727 Great Britain July 10, 1930 

